Arizona, New York to Launch Investigations of 9/11 Charities

August 31, 2011

In the wake of an Associated Press investigation of 9/11 charities that are alleged to have misused funds intended to support and honor those killed or affected by the September 11 terrorist attacks, officials in Arizona and New York have announced their own investigations to determine whether any laws were violated, the AP reports.

The AP investigation of 325 charities created after 9/11 to serve the families of victims and honor the memories of those lost found that most organizations followed financial disclosure regulations, accounted fully for their expenditures, and closed after fulfilling their goals. However, it also found dozens of organizations that raised and spent money without publicly documenting their finances, paid salaries and benefits to their founders without delivering on mission-related promises, or had little to show for their spending.

Arizona attorney general Tom Horne identified the American Quilt Memorial — a charity that raised more than $700,000 to create a memorial quilt that was never completed — as an organization his office was investigating. In New York, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's office declined to identify specific groups that were being investigated but acknowledged that his office would be conducting a broad review of 9/11 charities to ensure compliance with state laws.